Alannah: A companion fic
by TrinityTinuviel
Summary: Sequel to Alannah. Lost in the big city, sometimes you need a smaller hand to show you the way


Author: TrinityTinuviel  
  
Genre: Drama/Romance  
  
Disclaimers: I assert moral right to be identified as the writer/creator of the Girl. The Wachowski Brother's invented the world of the Matrix, ergo they own anything you recognize. And Neo belongs to Trinity.   
  
A/N: Alannah means 'my child' in Gaelic.   
  
Thanks to my awesome and lovely beta Midnight, who helped code and do a million different things for me, all while writing stupendous showersmut, and to Danascully for the idea and the permission to reference things from her fics (which are quality things, people. Read them!)  
  
"Shit," he cursed. "Shit, shit, shit." It was the mantra running through his head right now. He couldn't believe himself. He was most decidedly lost. Wandering the alleys and broad main streets of Zion, the Man stopped and took a good clear look around him. Again. It was useless. The streets wound and intersected every which way, which made it almost impossible to trace his steps back to where he came from. In some ways, he was glad that nobody recognized him, and that there weren't that many people about. It was late, and some of the streetlights were already switching off. The curious stares and muted whispering that followed him was like the wake of a boat in water. It was profoundly frustrating. He was awed at first by the sheer number of people that they managed to cram into such a small space, and awed again at the fact that they all seemed to know whom he was. Hell, he wasn't even sure who he was yet, but all these people having so much faith in him was a constant reminded of the Prophesy and the role that he would have to fulfil.  
  
He tried to shake the thoughts out of his head. He was lost; he really did not need to be doing major deep thinking. The Man spied a bench in the corner of his eye, and he made a move for it, sitting down, grateful for its sturdy, solid comfort. Again, he tried to focus his mind on where he came from. The Military wing, he knew. Room number 113, where he'd been for about 6 days already. To his own credit, the first 3 days he didn't venture much outside the room. His captain was generous enough to leave food for him and his lover. The fourth day had been different. A small, wiry messenger that seemed to be teeming with excitement and nervous energy had summoned him to the council. The boy had taken him all the way to the council chambers, and the Man hadn't paid much attention to which routes they took through the vast city. They got there, and the Man was escorted back, that was the important thing. When he had finally gotten curious enough to explore outside of his room, he gave his lover a kiss and promised to be home by lights-out.   
  
And there he was now. Completely, and utterly screwed. But then, over the inner cursing of himself, he heard the patter of feet, quick and even, coming down the road behind him. He took his head out of his palms quickly. Here was his opportunity; he just hoped he didn't sound too much like an ignorant newbie. "Besides," he chided himself inwardly, as the footsteps grew louder "if I don't take this chance I may have to bunk down on this bench by myself." Which was a grim prospect, considering that it got very dark and cold, and he's much rather be in a warm, downy bed with the Woman in his arms.  
  
The footsteps gave way to human form. It was a young girl, hair a wild brown-blonde color. She was humming to herself as she skipped down the road, totally absorbed in the tune that bloomed from her lips.   
  
"Excuse me," the Man said, looking hopefully at her.   
  
"Hi!" said the girl, stopping her hum and coming to a stop right in front of the bench where the Man was currently sitting heavily.   
  
  
  
"Uh..." said the Man, "I was wondering if you could take me back to the Military Wing. Or at least tell me. Because I'm sort of lost and-" The girl grinned, and giggled.   
  
  
  
"You must be a new poddie- I mean...Sorry. My Mam said it's not nice to call people poddies." The girl flushed a brilliant red and hung her head. The Man smiled, despite himself.   
  
"Hey, its ok. I don't really mind. What else are you supposed to call us?" he asked, his light joking bringing an eager smile to the girls face.   
  
" I don't know," she pondered, moving to sit down on the bench with the Man. "Mam says to call them 'newly freed' but I think that's too big."  
  
The Man smiled at this young girl, her head bend down in concentration, fingers plucking at a curl of hair. "How about you just call me Neo?"   
  
The girl brightened. "Neo," she said, tasting it for the first time. "It's short. I like it."   
  
"Me too," said Neo. "So... do you think that you could help me get back to the Military Wing? I sort of got lost. It's pretty big here."   
  
"Sure!" said the girl, bouncing up and grabbing hold of Neo's hand. The sudden warm contact took him by surprise, and he was awed at the fact that her little brown hand fit so perfectly into his. Almost like the time when his and the Woman's hands met and clasped in bed at night. But all too soon the girl tugging at him jerked him out of his reverie. "Come on!" she called. They started at a quick pace down the road.   
  
"You seem to know your way around," Neo said, looking down at the girl. She grinned proudly.   
  
"Yep!" she said, "I've lived here my whole life. Since my family doesn't live on the same floor, I sometimes run messages to for my Mam to my uncles and aunties. I can show you where my Aunty Chyra lives, it's on the way."   
  
"I'd like that." Neo said softly.   
  
"Have you met Commander Locke?" asked the girl, leading Neo up a winding flight of stairs at the corner of the market square. She pointed at a round blue door with the numbers 002 mounted in copper on the corner. "That's his apartment there." Neo nodded, a small smile ghosting across his face.   
  
"He's very loud, isn't he?" Neo said quietly. The girl muffled a giggle.   
  
"Yes," she said, "My Mam went to see him speak at the Temple Gathering last month. She said he was very loud, and other things that she said I mustn't tell anyone."   
  
Neo smiled. "I saw him in Council, a few times. He likes being at the center of attention" he confided, leaning down to whisper in the girl's ear. She grinned.   
  
"My brother likes being the center of attention," the girl said bitterly. "I don't like it."  
  
"I don't think the rest of the Councillors did either," said Neo, grinning at the thought. The girl tugged at hand again, as they passed another door, this time with a 122 carved in it.   
  
"See!" she said, whispering excitedly. "That's my Aunty Chyra's apartment. We're close to the Military Wing now. What's your room number?"   
  
"Its number 113, and it has a red door," said Neo. "That's all I remember."   
  
"Then we go this way," said the girl, pulling Neo left into a narrow street high above where they had started. Neo looked over the railing, the only thing that separated him from a 200 metre drop to the ground. Well, that and the girl's hand still clasping his in a surprisingly strong grip. He still hadn't gotten used to just how high up Zion went. It was like living in an open-air skyscraper, only without the benefits of the open air, and the sky. But the view was still incredible. It was now murky grey in color, the bright yellow of the house lights standing out like caught fireflies in a spider's web.   
  
"We're here," said the girl, giving Neo's hand a quick pull. She knocked on the door quickly. Now that he was home, Neo was embarrassed at having to be lead home by a young child. He considered pulling his hand out of her grasp, but realized that he liked it. He stayed put. The door opened with a whine of metal on metal, and the girl grinned in pleasure to see who it was.   
  
It was the Woman, who smiled at the unlikely sight that was at the front door. Her lover, being lead back home by the same child that she had been so taken with before. It was Neo who broke the silence.   
  
"Hey... I sort of got lost," he said sheepishly, running a hand over his head.   
  
"I can tell," said the Woman, leaning against the doorframe. "But how did you meet my friend here?" nodding towards the girl who was standing next to Neo proudly, grinning at the sight of her companion again. She cut in.   
  
"I found him. He was lost on my floor, around where I saw you. I took him back here because he was nice," the girl said.   
  
"Thank you," said the Woman. "And how's your leg?" She looked down and was relieved to see unbroken skin. The girl stuck out her leg in front of her and examined it.   
  
"Yep, its fine. My Mam put some bandages on it and washed it and it was right as rain, she said. I told her you knew what you were doing because you work on a ship," she nodded wisely. The Woman nodded also, but Neo looked at her quizzically. "I'd better be going," said the girl "Mam will be worried about me." She turned to leave, then doubled back. She looked furtively at Neo, who was standing in the corner, with a look of mild surprise on his face. Then she pulled the Woman down to her, so that her ear was level with the girl's mouth. The Woman went willingly, face open and excited like she was lucky to be sharing in her secrets.   
  
"Neo, that man. You said you had to look after a special man. Is that him?" she whispered. The Woman nodded and smiled. "I don't see anything so special about him," said the girl sagely. "He just looks normal to me. Does he have a third arm or something?"   
  
The Woman pulled the girl in again, this time cupping her hand around the girl's ear to whisper: "No, well, he is normal. He can just do amazing things." The girl understood. She turned to leave, and impulsively threw her hands around Neo's neck in a fierce hug.   
  
"Goodbye!" she said, words muffled against his neck as he crouched down to give her a hug in return.   
  
"Thanks for bringing me back," he said. The girl blushed.  
  
"Its ok," she said "Twasn't any trouble to me. Then she turned to say goodbye to the Woman, who had straightened up and was standing tall in the doorframe. Suddenly shy, she didn't know what to do. As if on cue, the Woman reached down to her, grasping her head lightly and giving her a feather-light kiss on the forehead.   
  
"Thank you for bringing Neo back to me," said the Woman, brushing a strand of hair behind the girl's ear.   
  
"It was nothing," the girl whispered. Suddenly, she bestowed a small, fast kiss on the side of the Woman's cheek, and ran away, waving as she went down the hall until all they could hear were small pounding footsteps, fading into nothingness. The Woman watched her go, with a sad smile on her face. Suddenly, she shook her head and turned to Neo.   
  
"So you got lost? Oh, Neo..." she said, pulling up from where he had fallen down in a sit against the wall.   
  
"Oh come on, it was nothing." He grumbled. "You can't tell me you haven't gotten lost before. This place is huge."   
  
"True," she said, slipping her arm around his waist, "but I didn't have such a helpful guide back."   
  
"She's a character, that girl," Neo said, leaning his head against the Woman's. She nodded.   
  
"She is indeed," she murmured. A long moment passed between them, and they stood in silence to watch the last of the city lights turn off. Then, with a shake of her head, the Woman pulled herself out of her reverie. She tugged on the Man's hand, and turned to face him. "Don't get lost again," she said, eyes twinkling. She winked, and kissed him lightly on the forehead; hand on his neck and thumb rubbing circles just under his ear. He whispered something in her ear, and she smiled. Then she pulled him inside and shut the door. 


End file.
